Safe Speed Forums

except IG has told us that, somewhat bizarrely, the courts don't care about this rule and if you get doored it's your own stupid fault for riding too close - or perhaps that only applies to cyclists because we all know they have no right being on the road in the first place

Think it depends on the circumstances to some extent. A prudent cyclist is like a prudent driver - on the look out for a numpty and Franklin does tell us to beware - even though driver has duty of care by law not to open a door.

Law courts, though - law unto themselves at times and judgements are made within the boundaries of higher court binding precedences and finding of fact relating to the individual case and circumstance. If you ride too close and too fast - then courts may split the liability dependent of on evidence and argument provided. Split liablities like this usually occur when matter is dealt with solely by insurers who are - let's face it - sharklike in manner - and will look after their own interests first and not their client.

If passenger opens a car door in L3/:L2 and doors someone in those lanes - then that would be deemed most unreasonable and no one could foresee this - so no defence.

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I do this, it's my right and my privalige, I'm riding a bike in English weather for reasons of a) being able to have a precise time from a to b (subject to accidents and road closures) and b) being able to get there faster than a car.

It's also law?? that you are not aloud to deliberately slow other people down, which is what people try to do when they are doing xxmph in the outside lane with a vehicle (car, bike or whatever) approaching behind them and they refuse to pull in..

A lot of bikers will use only complete lanes where possibile, and will occasionally go from L3 to L2 to 'undertake / filter' past a car in L3 that wouldn't safely fit into the gap in L2..

The bikes that do this are usually STUPIDLY powerful, will do 70-120mph+ in that gap if req'd and know there's options of a) braking or b) going over the white lines between the cars if they've somehow misjudged the time it would take

This, again, is the bikers choice, and the more bikers do it, the less they misjudge it..

A mechanical fault would no doubt put them in danger, but no more than if you pull out from L2 to L3 expecting to be able to match / exceed the speed of the car already in L3 and have a mechanical fault.

I find, a lot of car drivers are either ex-bikers who've had bad accidents or whose wives say they can't play anymore (these are the ones who usually spot a bike a mile off and will do everything they can to let the bike know it's been spotted) or NEVER touched a bike and have NO IDEA of the capabilities of bike and rider...

It's NOT like driving a car, where you're in a cocoon with power steering, stereo, heating, power abs brakes etc.. Most bikes are 'what the rider does, the bike does INSTANTLY' and it's the kind of combination most car drivers only have when walking.